Go Dog Training

A frequent complaint from clients about their dog is:  

"But he KNOWS better..."

While I am always diplomatic in these situations and even sympathetic, the truth is that this type of thinking sets dogs up for failure.  We not only expect our dogs to be better than dogs; we expect them to be better than humans!

Here is a short list of things that I have done even though, "I know better..."

Roll a stop sign

Bite my nails

Scream at my dog

Pee in a parking lot or public park

Eat cookie dough with raw egg in it

Go to the beach without sunscreen

Drink beer, wine & champagne in the same evening

Use my cell phone while driving

What I would love to say to my clients (if I didn't think it would seem rude, or hurt their feelings) is:  "So, what!"  

Lets say your dog does KNOW BETTER.  Knowing is still just a small part of the equation.  There are other/more important factors.  Even without morals behavior is mitigated by:

Motivators:  Motivation is HUGE.  Even a very moral person might steal or lie if they were starving or under threat.  Motivation is at the core of debates on torture because if sufficiently motivated you can drastically alter a beings "normal" behavior.

Consequences:  The severity of a consequence, or the absence of any consequences CAN matter...but you can't control what is learned..  I got a $300 ticket for not wearing my seatbelt on a 1/4 mile drive to the corner store.  Now I always wear my seat belt in small towns.  I say CAN matter because despite fairly serious hangovers from partying too hard at weddings I continue to drink too much with old friends and I pay the price the next day.

Experience:  There are technically consequences for driving and talking on a cell phone, but my experiences with this have been good.  I have not had an accident, nor have I been ticketed... yet!  

Setting:  Could you explain to an alien from mars why peeing by a tree when camping is OK, but to do so in a public park could result in arrest for public indecency?

So the next time you find yourself thinking: "She knows better..."  

Remind yourself, KNOWING just means that you CAN do something;

it has very little to do with the action you take.  

This is true for humans; this is true for dogs.  

AND, this is why creating good habits with your dog is far, far more important that teaching them to understand your rules, logic and/or potential consequences for not following them.